Clearing Storm over Ama Dablam

Ama Dablam is in the heart of the Everest Region, Nepal.

Twenty minutes before I took this image, I was surrounded by dense fog. I looked at my map again and the contour lines clearly showed that Ama Dablam, one of the most beautiful mountains in the world, should be right in front of me. But all I could see were a few rocks at my feet and a the faint outline of a dark ridge disappearing toward the bottom of a deep canyon. Then the fog began to glow, and in an instant, it lifted up and revealed this spectacular scene in front of me. I had time to take about 10 photos before the alpenglow faded. I continued to stand there in the fading twilight transfixed, overwhelmed by the brevity and majesty of the scene I had just witnessed. And I was elated that I had finally photographed a scene that did justice to the grandeur of the Himalayan landscape.